Mindful of the considerable and increasing influence and importance of public relations, ICCO members commit at all times to abide by the following 10 principles:

To work ethically and in accordance with applicable laws;

To observe the highest professional standards in the practice of public relations and communications;

To respect the truth, dealing honestly and transparently with employees, colleagues, clients, the media, government and the public;

To protect the privacy rights of clients, organisations, and individuals by safeguarding confidential information;

To be mindful of their duty to uphold the reputation of the industry;

To be forthcoming about sponsors of causes and interests and never engage in misleading practices such as “astroturfing”;

To be aware of the power of social media, and use it responsibly;

To never engage in the creation of or knowingly circulate fake news;

To adhere to their Association’s Code of Conduct, be mindful of the Codes of Conduct of other countries, and show professional respect at all times;

To take care that their professional duties are conducted without causing offence on the grounds of gender, ethnicity, origin, religion, disability or any other form of discrimination.

#POWERofETHICS activities:

@PRTalkUK twitter discussion on the power of ethics in PR tonight (3rd September) at 20:30. Francis Ingham MPRCA, Chief Executive, ICCO and Director General, PRCA, will be taking part. Just use the hashtag #prtalk to join in